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At 11 km long and with a roof with a light show, China’s longest underwater tunnel has become a tourist attraction

April 23, 2026 by usatoday24

Under the waters of Lake Taihu, in the Chinese province of Jiangsu, lies the longest underwater tunnel ever built in China. Although it serves today as a great solution to decongest one of the most dynamic regions in the country, it has also become, almost by surprise, a tourist destination on its own merits. The reason: a majestic ceiling full of LED lights that change color and an architecture almost designed more to be contemplated than to be functional. A key point. As we mentioned, the tunnel extends under Lake Taihu, in Jiangsu province, about 50 kilometers east of Shanghai. It aims to connect the expressways of Suzhou, Wuxi and Changzhou to relieve traffic pressure in the lakeside cities, while also serving to boost economic development from the Yangtze River Delta region. It is also a segment of the highway that connects Shanghai and Nanjing, the former national capital. For this reason, it is a key piece in China’s infrastructure network, but its design and light show have also led to it being transformed into a whole tourist experience. Figures. With 10.79 kilometers in length, the tunnel had a cost of about 9.9 billion yuanabout 1,230 million euros. Work began in 2018 and lasted almost four years. To build the two-way tunnel, with six lanes and 17.45 meters wide, more than two million cubic meters of concrete were used. For ventilation, there are three complexes distributed along the surface of the lake that guarantee air circulation inside. The challenge of building under the mud. It was not a simple work. The bed of Taihu Lake is formed by large accumulations of clayey silt, which made it impossible to use conventional excavation methods with tunnel boring machines. The engineering team opted for a cofferdam system: the route was divided into nine sections and, in each one, a temporary dike was built to “create solid ground” and work dry. Once that section was finished, it was filled with water and moved on to the next. According to collect Tunnels & Tunnelling, one of the biggest challenges was waterproofing the structure, since at some points the tunnel is 20 meters below the lake bed. Thes LED lights yesThey always improve everythingeither. Their figures and the work that had to be done for something of such magnitude to materialize is impressive. But the tunnel has attracted more and more attention for a clear reason: its roof. Those responsible They installed LED lights on the roof of the tunnel to combat driver fatigue during what would otherwise be a very monotonous journey underground. The panels do not simply project a uniform color, but rather show images that change. Ventilation and architecture. But the LEDs on the ceiling are not the only eye-catching element. The three ventilation points that emerge on the surface of the lake have been conceived as sculptural pieces. According to China Dailythe one located in the center of the tunnel was transformed into an artificial island 150 meters in diameter; that on the western side, near Mashan, is shaped like a conch; and the one on the eastern side, next to Nanquan, evokes the silhouette of an ancient boat. The most striking is the one known as “Jade Snail”: 45 meters in diameter and 39 meters high, it is equipped with 174,000 LED light points. A tunnel that generates tourism. The CCCC construction company points out that the Taihu tunnel is now the second highway between Shanghai and Nanjing, and has increased the number of visitors to the tourist enclaves of Lingshan and Nianhua Bay by 50%. The Mashan area, directly connected by the tunnel, is home to the Lingshan Great Buddha, one of the largest in the world and a pilgrimage destination for millions of people. Liu Xiaoyu, head of Wuxi National Taihu Lake Tourism Resort, pointed out told China Daily that “the tunnel will bring more tourists to the Lingshan Scenic Area and hotels in the area.” recordd. At almost 11 kilometers, the Taihu is the longest underwater tunnel in China, but it is not the first in the world. The title of longest underwater road tunnel remains with the Norwegian Ryfastwith 14.3 kilometers, connecting the city of Stavanger with the municipality of Strand. On the other hand, if we talk about underwater tunnels in general, the Eurotunnel (which links England and France by rail) retains the absolute record with 37.9 kilometers of submerged section. Images | CGTN In Xataka | Xiaomi or Xpeng car factories are so advanced that they have become the favorite destination of Chinese schools

Mexico is about to finish one of the longest bridges in Latin America

March 25, 2026 by usatoday24

If you’ve been to Cancun, it’s very likely that you’ve been through the same thing: short trips that take much longer than expected, especially when it’s time cross towards the hotel zone. The city depends largely on a connection that, at peak times or in high season, becomes a bottleneck that is difficult to avoid. That is the problem that Mexican authorities have been trying to alleviate for years. Now, everything indicates that the answer is close to materializing with the Nichupté Vehicular Bridgean infrastructure that seeks to offer a direct alternative and significantly reduce travel times. The answer to this problem is not only a distant promise, but a work that is approaching its final phase. According to the Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation (SICT), the Nichupté Vehicular Bridge is in his last works and the most recent official forecast places its opening towards the end of April. In this final section, the work focuses on verifying that the structure responds as expected, with load tests of up to 150 tons and vibration measurements using accelerographs. A new access to alleviate the Cancun bottleneck To understand the scope of the work, it is advisable to stop at its dimensions, which are not always clearly explained. The infrastructure adds 11.2 kilometers in total: 8.8 km correspond to the bridge over the lagoon and 2.4 km to the junctions at both ends. According to the SICT, this is the key difference between the complete work and the section that directly crosses the Nichupté lagoon system. Added to this are three traffic lanes, one of them reversible, as well as a 103-meter metal arch and a cycle path. Beyond its dimensions, the key is how it is integrated into the real mobility of the city. The new route will connect the Boulevard Luis Donaldo Colosio with the Kukulcan Boulevardtwo essential points to access the hotel zone, one of the main tourist and traffic hubs of Cancun. This connection, those responsible explain, would make it possible to reduce journeys that today can take up to an hour and a half to just about 10 minutes, an estimate that should be understood as the objective of the project. Furthermore, the infrastructure is planned as an alternative route in emergency situations, something especially relevant in an area exposed to natural phenomena. The scope of the work is also measured by who it aims to impact. According to data from the Government of Mexicothe bridge is designed to benefit more than 1.3 million inhabitants of the region, in addition to the more than 20 million tourists who visit Cancun every year. Regarding the expected traffic, the official figures have not been entirely uniform: in November 2025 the SICT spoke of an annual average daily traffic of 12,612 vehicles, while in January 2026 it raised that forecast to 20 thousand. Added to this is its impact during construction, with around 51 thousand direct and indirect jobs generated, according to the secretariat itself. But not everything is reduced to mobility and travel times. The passage of the bridge through the Nichupté lagoon system introduces a delicate variable, that of the impact on a sensitive ecological environment. The Ministry of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation maintains that the project has been developed under 10 programs and 25 environmental subprograms focused on mitigating this effect. In that framework 306 hectares of mangrove have been restoredrehabilitated 118 hectares of seagrasses and relocated more than 2,100 specimens of fauna, in addition to rescuing native vegetation. Cancun has been living for years with an obvious limitation in its mobility, especially in access to its most touristic area, and that pressure has only grown over time. He Nichupté Vehicular Bridge It is proposed as one of the most ambitious responses to this problem, both due to its scale and the role it aspires to play in the day-to-day life of the city. With the work in its final phase and an opening scheduled for the end of April according to the most recent official communication, it will soon be possible to verify to what extent it meets the expectations that have accompanied the project since its conception. Images | Secretariat of Infrastructure, Communications and Transportation / SICT Quintana Roo Center In Xataka | China has already conquered the cargo ship industry: now it has begun to compete in the mega-cruise ship industry

Mexico is about to finish one of the longest bridges in Latin America

March 25, 2026 by usatoday24

the longest railway tunnel in the world

December 1, 2025 by usatoday24

Megastructures have a what-do-I-know-what-do-I-know-what makes us love them. It makes perfect sense: They are colossal works that humanity has been doing for millennia and in which we increasingly use more and more sophisticated machinery. There is also a certain sense of competition, and if a few months ago Europe boasted of longest railway tunnel in the worldtoday we have to talk about an even more difficult one: one twice as long and underwater. It is the Bohai Strait Railway Tunnel. AND will be in Chinaclear. Dalian-Yantai. To the sides of Beijing are the provinces of Liaoning and Shandong. The first has 44 million inhabitants. The second, 101 million. They are two important nerve centers in China, but there is a problem: they are separated by the Sea of Bohai and the only way to get from one to the other is by ferry, which takes about eight hours, or by going around the bay on a 1,500-kilometer trip. Given the importance that the area was gaining, in 1992 the idea of a connection across the strait arose that would link the cities of Dalian and Yantai. Although China has accustomed us to mega constructions in record timein this case the logistics were complicated and it was in 2012 when a research group was established under the supervision of the Chinese Academy of Engineering to see if it was viable and, in 2019, they began to talk seriously about the project. Specs. A structure that combined bridges, islands and tunnels – like the Hong Kong Zhuhai-Macao– those in charge of the project agreed that the best solution would be a single railway tunnel whose characteristics are… colossal: 125 kilometers in total, 90 of them underwater. Designed for trains traveling at a speed of 220 km/h. Built 80 meters below the seabed. Two main tunnels of 10 meters in diameter. The most important thing: of the eight hours by ferry or more than ten by car, the journey would take about 40 minutes. It is a considerable reduction in time that will help not only transport people, but also what is most interesting in the region: goods and commerce. Train>car. The price of the tunnel has varied over long of these years. The estimate a decade ago was 200 billion yuan, about 30 billion euros. Currently, it is closer to 300 billion yuan, about 40 billion euros. Everything to unite two of the most powerful regions of China in terms of trade and more than the colossal Three Gorges Dam. HE esteem that it would take about ten years to recover the public-private investment in the infrastructure, and the reason why the tunnel has been planned as a railway tunnel instead of a mixed one (cars plus trains) is for safety reasons. Bohai’s will be more than twice as long as the Eurotunnelso creating such a long underwater tunnel suitable for cars would be extremely expensive and complex as it would require adequate ventilation. Furthermore, in the event of an accident, emergency response would be more difficult. What there will be are shuttle trains that will allow both cars and trucks to be loaded. This is something that is already being explored in other parts of the world and, recently, we have seen it raised in the American transcontinental. Challenges. Now, it’s not going to be easy. The topography of the bay bottom varies between areas of just 10 meters to others that reach almost 90 meters deep. In addition, there are active faults in the area and it is a region with high seismic activity. In fact, it is close to the Tan-Lu fault, one of the most active in China, which implies a thorough study to adapt the structure to possible earthquakes. Ecology. On the other hand, the ecosystem. Apart from being a sensitive area in terms of earthquakes, the tunnel would pass through ecologically sensitive areas. It is the habitat of the spotted seal, protected in China, and also includes migration routes for both fish and birds. You have to wait seated. And if we speak in the future it is because the works have not started. For now, it is about a projectbut in recent months important steps have been taken. In early 2024, the Bohai Tunnel was included in several national strategic documents, and in May this year incorporated to the Development Plan of the Modern Comprehensive Transportation System of the 14th Five Year Plan. In these 30 years, steps have been taken studying the feasibility of the project and exploratory drilling, and more recently more and more voices have emerged that mention the need to promote this Bohai corridor. When will the works begin? It is not known, but 2026-2030 is consider as the window of opportunity for it. Either way, if it ends up happening, Bohai will not only be – by far – the longest underwater railway tunnel in the world: it will also be one of the largest tunnels, overall. Images | Tambo, Ekem In Xataka | China has built the highest bridge in the world and has done what it must: turn it into a show

The longest train in history was born in 2001 and since then no one has surpassed it

November 16, 2025 by usatoday24

The train is the backbone of many countries. In Europe we know it wellin Latin America is catching up and the China and Japan current ones would not be understood without it. Another country where it is vital is Australia, although more than for the movement of the population, for the transport of goods. And, in 2001, in the heart of Western Australia, the BHP Iron Ore It made history by becoming the longest train in the world. More than seven kilometers long that have not yet been equaled. Necessary. One of the most powerful industries in Australia is mining, so much so that there are even mining influencers that recruit workers from any country. In the late 90s, mining companies faced a challenge: an increasing amount of mineral had to be transported from the source to the export ports. It was a challenge because logistics costs had to be kept under control so that prices did not skyrocket. Traditionally, we would have chosen to put more trains into operation, but it would not be efficient because we would have to pay for more fuel, for the use of the infrastructure and the salaries of a larger crew. Come into play BHPthe Australian giant that is one of the largest mining companies in the world, with an idea: what if we set up a huge train to load iron? This is how the Iron Ore train was born. The BHP Iron Ore train. Its dimensions were extraordinary: a convoy made up of 682 wagons, 5,648 wheels, a loaded weight of almost 100,000 tons and a length of 7,353 kilometers. Imagine 22 Eiffel Towers lying down and aligned, like this. To pull such a monster, eight locomotives GE AC6000CW (each with 6,000 HP) with 16-cylinder engines were distributed throughout the vehicle. Apart from the front, the rest were within a kilometer of each other and managed to complete a 275 kilometer Yandi journey, with a cargo of Newman mines, to Port Hedland in just ten hours. The pace was slow, yes, but the important thing about this was not It was the Guinness record that he achieved, but the proof of a technology called Distributed Power. Distributed Power. This was BHP’s goal, to prove that the technology worked. And it basically consists of what we have said: distributing the locomotives along the train instead of concentrating them in the front so that the traction and braking force is greater, more uniform and, also, more efficient. Everything worked like a Swiss clock thanks to great precision and harmony between the locomotives, which were controlled by a single driver in the front system. It’s long, and there’s no train If Distributed Power was the technology, the control system was the LOCOTROL. The leading locomotive communicated with the remote ones through a radio frequency system that synchronized all acceleration and braking operations. This allowed lateral forces and friction to be drastically reduced when cornering, which reduced both wheel wear and the risk of derailment and, in turn, it is estimated that between 4 and 6% less fuel was consumed. Pilbara. The BHP Iron Ore was a technical prodigy that set the record for the longest train in the world in 2001, but if you are a train enthusiast, don’t pack your bags yet to see it in action: it was a one-time event, so much so that there is very little material about it. Once the technology was proven, what BHP did was apply it to smaller trains. The Pilbara is the region in which much of its operations are concentrated, and what the company currently operates are several regular trains with formations of about four locomotives with about 270 carriages. It is still impressive, since the length of these trains is close to three kilometers and they have a loaded weight of about 40,000 tons. The company’s next steps are to electrify these trains to reduce emissions, and one trick will be to use regenerative braking to recharge the batteries in sloped areas. It is something that other companies are also testing in the country. Similar attempts. Thus, the BHP Iron Ore was a prodigy, but also something unique that has not been matched, not even close, more than 20 years after its launch for that test. In August this year, Indian Railways commissioned the Rudrastraa 354-car, 4.5-kilometer-long train powered by seven locomotives (two at the front and one every 59 cars). And in Europe, tests are also being carried out with distributed power trains, but for kilometer and a half trains. In the end, they are all very far from the Iron Ore both in length and weight, but beyond the record in 2001 it was shown that this distributed power technology was a solution for trains longer than conventional ones. We’ll see if at some point someone needs to create a longer train, but it seems complicated. Images | WabtecBHP In Xataka | The longest train journey in the world: more than 18,000 kilometers between Portugal and Singapore without changing transport

The longest railway tunnel in the world

September 27, 2025 by usatoday24

China is the name that comes to mind to Talk about megaconstructions. The country has faced some of the more complex works of these last years and has pharaonic projects such as the New largest dam in the world or the more complicated tunnel. In this matter, Europe is not far behind with two projects that want to be the longest tunnels in the world in different fields are fields: that of the Greater tunnel submerged, with 120 kilometersand the longest rail tunnel in the world: Brennero base. A 2006 project that finally gives results. Brennero’s base tunnel. We are talking about a work that has been dilated a lot, with several changes in estimated plans and dates of completion. Construction officially began in 2007but the excavations did not start until 2015. It is part of the European Scandinavia-Mediterranean (or Scan-Med) and will have the Munich-Verona axis. The objective is to facilitate communication between countries by saving an imposing natural obstacle: Alps. This is something important in order to improve Commercial and passenger network in Europe because trains are becoming the tool for depend less on the plane in full way to decarbonization And, in addition to allowing a faster connection between Germany and Italy, much of the Alpine merchandise traffic from the road to the railroad will be transferred. The idea is less traffic jams on roads, less CO₂ emissions and, obviously, a Acceleration in logistics between northern and southern Europe. Colossal. The characteristics From the tunnel, they impose. In total, it will have a length of 64 kilometers, which will make it, according to its drivers, into the longest railway tunnel in the world when it enters into operation. The main section between the Italian city of Fortezza and the Austrian Innsbruck will have about 55 kilometers in length and will be composed of two parallel tunnels with a single route each. They will be connected every 333 meters by service tunnels to allow rapid evacuation in case of failure and something unique is that it will be a “flat” tunnel, with almost the entire journey to about 794 meters above sea level. This is necessary to allow operating the trains with lower consumptionsince in some current paths through the Alpine region there are trains that need several locomotives due to the inclination of the road. Beyond transportation. The idea is that it allows the passage of merchandise trains of up to 3,000 tons and passenger trains that can circulate at high speed (250 km/h compared to the current 50 km/h average due to the demands of the land), but since they are piercing the mountain, they will take advantage of something else. A dozen meters under the main galleries, there will be another five -meter diameter tunnel and others almost 56 kilometers long. Will be what is known as a Exploratory Tunnela channel that will allow geological research in that mountainous area, in addition to facilitating a drainage of groundwater. State and next steps. At first, the bridge was going to be ready by 2025, but the estimates were changing. The Alps is a complex area Due to the presence of failures and groundwater, which has forced both excavation methods and solutions to pass under rivers and the isarco. Administrative delays have also played a role in this story because Austria and Italy are building their respective sides of the tunnel. And the Covid-19 pandemic forced the work. All this raised the initially planned budget of 6,000 million euros to almost 8.4 billion, but recently we have witnessed a green outbreak. Using excavators like ‘Flavia‘That they allow digging while the tunnel has, on September 18 the Italian and Austrian tunneladoras They found themselvesachieving the underground connection between the two countries. It was a milestone, but there is still work to do to cover the tunnels, display rail infrastructure and add both technical equipment and ventilation and signaling systems. Piercing the Alps. The view is set in 2032, when it is estimated that the works will end and the tunnel can be exploited to move goods and passengers. Now, although colossal, it is not the only project that is currently under development in the Alpine region. Interestingly, several compete for being the longest railway tunnel in the world. The other great exponent of this corridor is that of Mont Cenis That, with 57.5 kilometers, Lyon will join with Turin. There is also the San Gardardo base with 57.1 kilometers (It will link the Swiss towns of Erstfeld and Bodio in Italy) and more ‘modest’ projects such as those of Koralm (32 km), Semmering (27 km), Ceneri (14.5 km) and Lötschberg (34.6 km). Of course, the objective is the same: to facilitate transalpine transport to reduce CO₂ emissions and speed up the movement of both travelers and merchandise. We will see if, now, construction deadlines are fulfilled. Images | BBT-SE In Xataka | Japan created an artificial peninsula to make an airport. You will soon have an submarine airport

It will be one of the longest lunar eclipses of the decade

September 5, 2025 by usatoday24

The Romans said “Origo” to refer to the origin, so they used “orior” as a verb born. From there came “Ortus” for the birth of the sun, better known as dawn. “Ortho” in Spanish is defined as the exit of a star by the horizon. And this Sunday, With the lunar eclipsethe moon will have a beautiful ortho. A total moon eclipse. Every year there are at least two lunar eclipses, but they are not always total. This Sunday, September 7, will be one of the longest in the decade, with a totality of 82 minutes visible from most Asia. It can also be seen already started From most of Spainwith the moon very low on the horizon. But it will not be visible from America. A lunar eclipse occurs when the earth is aligned between the sun and the moon in full moon phase, and its shadow is projected on the lunar disc. The earth’s shadow has two zones: the gloom, which darkens the moon subtly, and the umbra, which blocks sunlight. In the case of a partial eclipse, the umbra looks like a bite, and in the case of a total eclipse, the full moon darkens. A blood moon. During the totality phase, The moon can become redwhat is known as blood moon. Although the umbra blocks the sunlight, the Earth’s atmosphere refracts solar light filtered towards the satellite. In this case, the blue wavelengths are dispersed by a physical phenomenon known as Rayleight dispersion, hence the red tones predominate. The blood moon this Sunday will reach its most intense point at 20:11. If you are in Spain, the moon will be totally eclipsed, reddish color. Even so, with a clear horizon, you can see the best part of the show, especially from the Balearic Islands and the Mediterranean coast of the Peninsula. On the other hand, visibility will be low to the west, particularly in the Canary Islands and Western Galicia, where only the partial phase of the end of the eclipse can be seen. The full schedule of the eclipse. In the peninsular hour (UTC+2), the Moon will enter a gloom (slight darkening) on Sunday at 17:28. The partial phase of the eclipse (the bite) will begin to be seen at 18:27, but only in the countries where the moon is already out. The totality phase (the moon is completely inside the Umbra) will begin at 19:31 and will end at 20:53. Then the partial phase will be repeated until 21:56 and the Penumbral until 22:55. What will be seen from Spain. The visible phases will depend on whether the moon is whether or not where you are. In Madrid, the Moon will leave at 20:35, so they can be seen about 18 minutes. In general, the moon will leave the horizon totally eclipsed and dyed red from most of the country, with the exception of western Galicia and Canary Islands, where only a partial eclipse will be seen. In Barcelona: 41 minutes of totality from 20:11 In Valencia: 32 minutes of totality from 20:20 In Seville: 10 minutes of totality from 20:42 In Zaragoza: 28 minutes of totality from 20:24 In Malaga: 17 minutes of totality from 20:35 In Murcia: 30 minutes of totality from 20:22 In Palma: 44 minutes of totality from 20:08 In Las Palmas: only partial from 20:15 (UTC+1) In Bilbao: 18 minutes of totality from 20:34 In Valladolid: 12 minutes of totality from 20:39 In Vigo: only partial from 20:56 In Gijón: 7 minutes of totality from 20:45 Where you have to look. Unlike a solar eclipse, seeing a lunar eclipse is totally safe with the naked eye and with prismatic. Since in Spain it coincides with the exit of the moon, it will be best to look for a place with the horizon is clear (a beach of the coast, a viewpoint, a roof …) and wait for the satellite to rise, already eclipsed and red, for the sky. Image | Liquidcrash (Flickr, CC by-SA 2.0) In Xataka | Total Eclipse of September 2025: When is it and how you can see it in Spain

We have just measured the longest ray ever registered on Earth: 829 kilometers D

August 2, 2025 by usatoday24

The rays are huge electrical discharges that in a fraction of second run through the distance between the clouds and the surface of the earth, a distance that can be several kilometers. However, lightning can go to distances a pair of superior magnitude orders. And this is one of those cases. The longest ray. The World Meteorological Organization has confirmed The longest ray observation ever registered. The electric shock toured a distance of 829 kilometers, with a margin of error of about 8 km. To put it in perspective, that is approximately the distance that separates in a straight line Barcelona from Seville. Although the validation by the United Nations Meteorological Office arrived this Thursday, the event occurred almost eight years ago, In October 2017in the United States. The great plains. The ray with its ramifications reached the skies of five states in the central and southern United States. The beginning of his “route” was on the east of the state of Texas, and his end was close to Kansas City, in Missouri. His tour and ramifications also made him pass through the states of Arkansasa, Kansas and Oklahoma. The region of the great plains where lightning was also known as Tornado Alleythe “Alley of Tornados”. This area, the OMM points out, stands out for being one of the areas “with the greatest storm activity known as Mesoescala convective systems”, which also makes it an ideal area for the formation of these “megarrayos.” For 61 km. As explained by the OMM, the new record exceeds 61 km the previous record. That ray also happened in the United States, but later, in April 2020, and reached 768 km, also with a margin of error of 8 km. In both cases, the detection and measurement of these rays was carried out through a method called Maximum Circle Arch. In addition, the OMM emphasizes that the 2017 ray was one of the first events measured with the help of the operational geostationary satellite for the study of the environment of the R (GOES-16) of the NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration). They also explain that this “megary” went unnoticed in a first analysis of the storm, and was not discovered until the review of the data compiled during the stormy episode. Now the details of the analysis carried out by the OMM team have been published In a working document of the Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society. Improving prevention. The study of the rays goes beyond establishing records that feed our curiosity about these violent phenomena. Improving our study tools and knowing these events better is key to reducing the risk they imply in several contexts, from aviation to forest fires. “Rays, although they are a source of astonishment, also constitute a great danger that is charged numerous lives every year worldwide, which makes these phenomena one of the priorities of the international initiative an early warns for all,” pointed in a press release Celeste Saulo, general secretary of the OMM. “This record highlights important issues for public security with respect to electrified clouds, (…) that may have serious repercussions on the aviation sector, as well as cause forest fires.” Carrying the accounts. The OMM is the institution in charge of Register extreme atmospheric events Throughout the world, an archive that has other records protected by great magnitude rays. For examplethe lightest ray registered lasted no less than 17 seconds (17,102 ± 0.002 s, specifically), and was captured in Argentina in June 2020. The direct impact of greater size was recorded in 1975 in Zimbabwe, and cost the lives of 21 people. However, the greatest indirect impact occurred in 1994, in Dronka (Egypt), and resulted in 469 people deceased when causing the fire of oil deposits. In Xataka | Two years ago a cosmic ray hit the earth. No one knows where it came from Image | Pixabay (File image)

We know exactly where and when the longest solar eclipse will occur in history: our great -great grandchildren will see it

July 16, 2025 by usatoday24

On July 16, 2186, the Moon will align perfectly between Earth and the Sun, creating an unprecedented eclipse. Unless Millionaire eccentric determined to rejuvenate Be successful, none of us will be here to see it. But our descendants will want to spend that day somewhere in Colombia, Venezuela or Guyana. 7 minutes and 29 seconds. The longest total solar eclipse in history will exceed in almost two seconds the duration of the record until now: the eclipse of June 15 of the year 743 AC, which reached a totality of 7 minutes and 27 seconds on the Indian Ocean, near the current Kenya and Somalia. No eclipse will have lasted so much From before 4000 ACand none will do it until after 8000 AD, so we can be sure that it will be a really unique astronomical event. The total solar eclipse of longer duration in an interval of 12,000 years. The moon will obscure South America. The historical solar eclipse of 7 minutes and 29 seconds will not occur on the mainland: the strip of totality will reach its largest duration over the Atlantic Ocean. However, northern South America will also enjoy extraordinarily long totalities. Especially in Colombia (from Cali to Puerto Ayacucho), Venezuela (from the Orinoco to Imataca) and Guyana (throughout the northern half of the country, including Georgetown). The show will not be limited to that narrow strip. Virtually all South America, including the entire Brazilian territory, can observe a partial eclipse of great magnitude. The eclipse will also be partially visible from Mexico to Paraguay, and west of Africa. In Spain, the Canary Islands will barely touch at sunset. Why it will last so long. The reason for this extreme duration is a “perfect storm” in the positions of the three bodies. The Earth will be at its point farther from the sun (its aphelium), which will make the solar disk look slightly smaller. The Moon, meanwhile, will be at its closest point to Earth (its perigee), so its apparent album will be larger. And finally, the eclipse trajectory will pass very close to Ecuador Earth. This combination maximizes the time that the shadow of the moon takes to sweep the surface of the earth. How we are so sure. Eclipses’ prediction is one of the most successful feats of computational astronomy. The scientists feed their superorders with the current positions and speeds of the Earth and the Moon, and then use Newton’s Movement Laws to know what will happen within several centuries or even millennia. These algorithms are actually models that integrate gravitational equations to project their positions in the future. And they do it with amazing precision, usually with a margin of error of less than one minute over hundreds of years. Primo brother of a recent eclipse. The total solar eclipse of 2186 belongs to the same “lineage” as the great eclipse of North America of April 8, 2024, The Saros 139 cycle. A cycle of Saros is a period of approximately 18 years, 11 days and 8 hours, after which the Sol-Tierra-Luna geometry is repeated almost identically, producing a very similar eclipse but displaced about 120 degrees to the west. The discussions among the eclipses enthusiasts already fantasize about how the hunting of this event will be in 2186. There is talk of flotles of cruises positioned in the Atlantic and flights in hypersonic airplanes to pursue the shadow and further extend the experience of totality. Although we can only imagine it, it is a fascinating reminder of how science allows us to travel in time and be witnesses, at least on paper, of the wonders that the cosmos reserve for future generations. Image | THAT In Xataka | Two European ships synchronized in space to create an artificial eclipse. It is a before and after in solar science

China wanted to be the queen of high -speed trains. So he built all the longest bridges in the world

June 29, 2025 by usatoday24

Although Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are immersed in a war for have the highest skyscrapers in the worldwhen we talk about megaconstructions, there is no one to have China. It doesn’t matter if we talk about tunnels, Dams, roads and even half -skyscraper. And, when we talk about bridges, there yes There is no rival. From time to time They complete a new pharaonic bridgebut if there is something that shows China’s muscle about it, they are the bridges of the Beijing-Shanghái line. Because it is in it where the three longest bridges are located in the world. Massive and … boring? He Great Danyang-Kunshan bridge It is the longest bridge in the world. It measures just over 164 kilometers and can also be the most boring bridge in the world. The reason is that it is a bridge in which functionality prevailed. It is part of the high -speed network that joins Beijing and Shanghai and in its construction, 10,000 workers used 450,000 tons of steel and 2.3 million m3 of concrete to give life to a structure that had to endure possible ships of ships and the impact of earthquakes. It has 2,000 pillars, 22 tunnels, it has an average altitude of just over 30 meters and trains circulate at a speed of more than 320 km/h. Declaration of intentions. The most striking thing is that it only took four years to complete the work. It is an achievement if we consider that other bridges, such as the Constitution of Cádizthey took more than seven years for about three kilometers. They began in 2006 and the works were completed in 2010, inaugurating both the bridge and the line in 2011. The investment? 8,500 million dollars, and although in later bridges we have seen an aesthetic intention by the engineers, that of Danyang-Kunshan was a declaration of intentions. It became a global reference in rail engineering, but above all in a sample of the Technological advance of the country when undertaking the Infrastructure construction large scale in record time. It is something that has also attracted attention to subsequent works, the speed at which things do, especially, in many occasions of works of great complexity. In dark red, the bridge. In clear red, part of the full line Beijing-Shanghai, a monster. Because although this bridge Have the Guiness record in length and it was an important technical advance, the most imposing thing is that it is only a piece of the puzzle that supposes the high -speed line Between Beijing and Shanghai. It is a connection with a length of 1,318 kilometers and, apart from that of Danyang-Kunshan, there are three other bridges that are on the list of the 10 longest in the world. He Great Bridge of Cangde measures 115.9 kilometers and the Great Tianjin Bridge It “stays” at 113.7 kilometers. The three are the longest in the world, and in the seventh place on the list is the Great Bridge of Beijingwith 48.2 kilometers. The four were completed for the inauguration of the line in 2011, assuming a pharaonic work and, in total, representing a third of the total line length. The artificial island of the Hong-Kong-Zhuhai-Macao bridge, which is a bridge over the water until it becomes a submarine “bridge” It is called obsession. Because, if we look at the list of the longest trains in the world, China is a constant, monopolizing with eight structures the top ten positions. Not only are they very long bridges to house train lines (the Weinan Weije It has 102.7 kilometers, but it is not from the Beijing-Shanghai line), also for roads. The fifth longest bridge in the world is Hong-Kong-Zhuhai-Macaohe longest maritime bridge With 55 kilometers (and, this yes, quite attractive), the eighth of the list is the Quingdao Haiwanwith another 44.5 kilometers of road and the tenth is the bridge of line 1 of the Wuhan Metro with 37.7 kilometers. Within those positions of honor, we only find a 54 -kilometer Thai bridge, the Band Na Expresswayand the Lake Pontchartrain Road in the United States with 38.4 kilometers. Images | Mnxanl(2) Pechristener, Highestbridges In Xataka | Three highways, 20 access ramps: China has the most diabolical exchanger in the world in Huangjuewan

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